Grey
by LittleDemonInside
Summary: Nothing is ever simply black and white. /Riza and Reiri story./ One-shot; Canon-verse AU.


**Disclaimer**: I don't own Princess Resurrection.

I'll say this now: this isn't a happy piece. I see this couple as very angsty when things start out; I say this based on the principle that their races naturally hate each other to the point of constant conflict. To overcome that much hate at that scale will take some time and probably a great amount of pain.

This story is canon-verse AU as neither character have any solid, canon back-stories. That said, I went ahead and made my own, so all of this is just my imagination. I wanted to write an angst fic for these two, so here it is. (Actually, thinking about it, I realize none of the characters have a solid back-story. =/ Perhaps the story writers would be so kind as to provide some for their readers?)

Anyway, onto the story!

* * *

><p><em>How had it all started?<em>

She was panting, sweating from the flames that licked their bodies from all around. She wanted to run, but she couldn't leave her mother behind.

_They were all relaxing after a nice dinner, sitting together in the lounge area of their house. Her father had been telling her one of his favorite wartime stories…_

"Come on, mother! We have to keep going!" the four-year-old Riza yelled over her shoulder as the two continued through the blaze. The half-breed was charged with protecting her mom while her father and brother went with the other warriors; she vowed to bring her mother to safety and go back to help. "Just a little farther!"

_Turned vampires suddenly came in from nowhere, wielding knives, torches and pitchforks. Every available entry into their home was overrun with low-ranked vampires._

Riza pulled her mother along, trying to see past all the smoke that surrounded them. When she felt the other's hand slip from hers, Riza quickly turned around in concern, finding her mother kneeled on the floor, coughing harshly into her hands. "Just a bit farther, mom!" the little redhead shouted over the crackling fire. "I can see the front door!"

_Her father and brother easily took care of the vampires that flooded into the living room and ran off to see if there were any others left. The two remaining in the living room contemplated going into the basement to hide, but that idea was discarded when Riza smelt smoke quickly building nearby._

Riza tugged her human mother's arm, encouraging the woman that they'd be all right once they made it outside. Exhausted, they finally made it to the end of the hallway and Riza used up her last bit of strength to punch down the wooden door. After collapsing outside, Riza strained her body to get up. _I have to bring her mother to safe—_

Her eyes widened, waves of red and orange reflected in her golden gaze. It wasn't just her house that was attacked; every building within sight was up in flames! The home of everyone she knew was engulfed in a smoldering tomb! The young werewolf's form shivered uncontrollably as she gazed upon the corpses of vampires and werewolves alike that littered the street. In the distance, howls of agony mixed with shrieks of pain, crying out together to create a haunting symphony of war.

Something stirred in the corner of Riza's vision and her eyes moved to track it. Her breath caught in her throat.

A pureblood vampire gazed back at her, his red eyes blazing as brilliantly as the fire sweltering behind him. His sword was covered in what could only be werewolf blood, and when he noticed her staring at it, his smile widened, fangs protruding onto his bottom lip, "Why, hello there little doggy. How about we play a nice game of hide-and-seek?"

-X-

Riza woke up screaming, her body trembling as she bolted upright in bed. From head to toe she was covered in sweat, and a full minute passed before she started to calm down. _My room. I'm… _Her gaze flicked about the familiar setting. _I'm in my room…_

Her body relaxed, her heart rate finally slowing down to a normal speed. Her gold eyes traveled to her hand and she watched it shake on her lap_. That dream again._ It had been so long since she last had it, since she'd started living with Hime and Hiro, that she had almost forgotten it completely. A sardonic smile formed on her face, _No. I should never forget that dream- that _nightmare.

Her fist clenched, _If I forget it, I'd be dishonoring the deaths of all my comrades that fell in that battle._ She smacked that same balled hand against her thigh, feeling tears forming at the corners of her eyes, _So many of my kinsmen died that day, and all I could do was sit there in fear!_

The vampires had attacked out of the blue; the werewolves were unprepared. Members from both sides were cut down left and right, but Riza remembered that one pureblood that lead the attack, watching him as he lopped off the heads of werewolves Riza knew by name! _No doubt to mount all across his walls!_ the redhead spat out in her thoughts, her anger boiling. _This is just a means to an end for them! A way to become famous! _The higher the kill count, the more renown the vampire was. Some even had fame based _solely_ on how many werewolves they've slain.

_Damn pureblooded vampires!_ Riza's lips were pulled back, teeth were bared in a silent snarl. _All of them are like that! All of them!_

… _All of them?_

The image of a familiar pureblood flashed across her mind, the very pureblood that made its home within this mansion.

She recalled when they first met, recalled Reiri's thoughts on werewolves and how they paralleled her own about vampires. Riza's face darkened, her body trembling in barely contained fury, _How many has she killed? _The image of Reiri lopping off the werewolves' heads instead of the male pureblooded vampire appeared in her head. _HOW MANY HAS SHE KILLED!_

Her body acted on its own, springing up from the bed and storming outside her room. She stalked down the dim corridors, knowing Reiri would be up and about during night hours.

Following the woman's scent, she finally came upon the vampire just as Reiri was about to open the front entrance.

The raven-haired vampire turned around when she noticed the half-breed approaching. She blinked, confused as to why the werewolf would be up at this hour, but didn't comment. Instead she grinned teasingly, "Going for an evening stroll? Don't forget to bring your leash."

The vampire didn't have time to react. Suddenly, she was slammed up against the twin mahogany doors, the wood cracking under the pressure. Reiri's body was held firmly in place by one of Riza's transformed hands, the other balling into a fist next the werewolf's head, ready to strike. "_How many!_" Riza snarled, her eyes almost burning in her rage.

Reiri's red eyes glowed brightly, her fangs bared as she hissed threateningly, "Let go of me, mutt." Her ribcage felt like it was being compressed and if any more force was applied she was sure bones would start breaking.

"_Not until you tell me how many werewolves you've killed! Now answer the fucking question!_" Riza drew back the fist that grasped Reiri's shirt and was about to slam the vampire into the wood again, but the pureblood burst into a flurry of bats, flying over to safety and hovering at a height Riza couldn't reach.

"Don't you dare run away from me!" Riza bellowed, glowering.

"Run away from you? No, I'm doing the exact opposite; I will give you the answer you're looking for." There was a long, heavy pause and they held each other's gaze for what felt like an eternity. Finally, Reiri smirked wickedly, sharp fangs visible in all their glory, "I stopped counting somewhere after fifty."

Riza snapped. An animalistic roar ripped from her throat and she picked up the nearest thing she could throw. "All you vampires are alike, killing just so you can mount our heads above your mantle piece!" she yelled, hurling a previously wall-mounted axe at the pureblood.

Reiri easily moved out of the way and gave the werewolf a condescending look, "You act as if _every_ werewolf is honorable and just."

"Werewolves fight fairly and with honor!"

"…" Reiri simply stared at Riza, looking at her as if she was trying to comprehend something she just realized. "… Do you truly believe that?" she asked at length.

"Of course!"

Reiri's face softened a little, almost looking sympathetic, "You're deluded by werewolf propaganda."

Riza scoffed, "As if I'd believe a vampire's word."

The pureblood was silent for a couple moments. "… Let me tell you a story," she began.

The half-breed lifted a brow, caught off guard by this sudden turn of the conversation, "Wha?"

Reiri softly shushed the other woman, her eyes growing distant over as she told her tale, "Hush, listen: Once upon a time, there was a girl who was thrown a grand ball in celebration of her first successful hunt alone…"

-X-

The string symphony stopped as she approached the top step. She gripped the staircase's handrail with one hand and the other held the skirt of her dark blue dress. Red eyes skimmed over the crowd, looking at all of her fellow kinsmen staring back at her.

This was her night. They had gathered here just for her.

True, a vampire coming back from their first successful hunt alone wasn't that big a deal, but it was a turning point in a vampire's life, a day marking their ability to live on their own. She, a pureblood, would be leaving her household soon, and Count Kamura threw the grandest of parties to see her off.

Reiri's entrance was announced as she slowly made her way down the stone staircase. Her eyes met with her father's, basking in their proud look, and for once her mother looked happy with Reiri's accomplishment. A smile graced the girl's features; making her mother happy was truly a feat in of itself.

Her foot touched the last step and the music started up again, filling the room with cheerful ambience. Gothic architecture was lit up with torches, sculptures bordered the carpet and paintings lined the stone walls, a freshly painted mural far above. Both boys and girls asked for a dance with her, but she politely declined, instead heading right for the large table serving warm, freshly harvested blood.

"Father," she curtsied upon meeting.

"Ah, Reiri." Her father placed his goblet down on the table and turned to her. "I thought for certain you'd be talking with your friends," he grinned.

"The night is still young, father," she smiled back. "You had something you wanted to talk to me about, so I figured now was as good a time as any."

The Count raised a brow, surprised, "Nothing ever gets passed you, does it?"

Reiri's red eyes glinted mischievously and her smile turned into a smirk, "No, I suppose not."

Her father gave an amused chuckle before starting, "I was wondering where you were thinking of going when you left the coven."

"Hm…" Reiri closed her eyes as she thought, "I was thinking of traversing the human world."

His eyes grew wide, "The human world? But that's—"

The younger Kamura opened her eyes, giving a placid smile as she cut her father off, "I will be fine, father. I will move when needed and won't attract unwanted attention." She met his gaze, "I can take care of myself."

He held her gaze for a while before breaking off with a sigh, "You remind me of your mother when you do that."

"Hm?"

The Count smiled indulgingly, "You're both independent, unable to be swayed when you've made up your mind." He looked down to her, "Speaking of your mother, she might not out-right say it, but she's very proud of you."

Reiri nodded, a small grin on her face, "I know."

Suddenly, a loud crash echoed through the room. They turned to the source of the sound, some vampires gasping as they saw the large doors had been knocked clean off their hinges. A deep chuckle came from the dimly lit hallway leading to the gala and the vampires waited in a collective silence to see what would appear.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here, boys?" A fully transformed werewolf casually walked through, stepping past the door's splinters and making his way up the red carpeting. "Looks like the _bloodsuckers_ are having a party, but we weren't invited!" His paws were stained red and his lips were pulled back into a wolfish smirk.

About seven more werewolves walked in behind him, all sporting similar smirks and blood on their paws. They chuckled at their bosses' joke.

The leader of the werewolf gang spoke up again, his smile dropping as he looked around, "Which one of you fuckers is Count Kamura? I've got a few bones to pick with you."

Reiri gaped as her father stepped forth into clear view of the werewolves. "I'd offer you a few bones to pick at, but I'm afraid you would just bury them in the back yard," he said, though no humor made it to his face as he glared. Some of the nearby vampires hissed at the intruding pack of werewolves, their eyes glowing bright red in warning.

The werewolf leader growled, barely able to keep his anger in check. He was about to retort back when an idea crossed his mind. Smiling wickedly, he chuckled, "Before I kill you and have my name written down in history as the werewolf who killed Count Kamura, how about a game of catch?"

The Count blinked, frowning, "What?"

The werewolf grinned manically as he thrust his hand into a nearby vampire, the vampire's blood flying off in all directions as the paw went right through. Taking his paw back out, the werewolf lifted the wounded vampire up and threw him at the Count, "CATCH!"

It was a frenzy of motion. The vampires leaped at the pack of werewolves, piling on top of their massive forms with fangs bared, and the werewolves took on groups of vampires at a time while taking out white ash stakes. Vampires shrieked as stakes were driven into their hearts, collapsing onto the floor as dead corpses. To take on this many vampires at once, Reiri knew these were highly skilled werewolves. Plus, who knew how many vampire guards they had to kill just to reach the ballroom!

This was her first time seeing a werewolf up close, her first time seeing them in battle. The young pureblood shivered, watching the werewolf leader and her father exchange blows, lost in their own duel in the midst of all the carnage around them. She took a hesitant step back, willing her limbs to move. _I have to get out of here!_

"Going somewhere?"

Reiri froze. Her wide eyes turned to find a blood-soaked werewolf twice her size grinning down at her. His glowing white eyes seemed to follow her every move. Without thinking, she pivoted on her feet and made a run for it, sprinting as fast as she could, weaving through the various fights all around, trying to get away from the hulking werewolf.

"I don't think so!" It didn't take long from the werewolf to catch up with her grabbing her shoulder and pinning her to the nearby wall. He smirked as she winced in pain, his large paws pressing into her torso. She reached to the side, trying to grab something -anything!- to throw at the werewolf. Her hand connected with a tall candlestick as his canine mouth grew close to her face, "While the Boss takes care of your daddy, I'm going to have some fun kicking you around. Ready to play, _princess_?"

-X-

"That was the first time I had ever killed a werewolf," Reiri ended, her face blank and her words void of emotion.

She watched the werewolf's motionless form from the air, watching the redhead as she transformed her arms back and dropped her gaze. "Th-that's…" Riza didn't know what to say. What _could_ she say? One of the core values she based her life on, one of the things she was taught growing up, was all but crushed by the story of a vampire family attacked out of greed by her own kinsmen!

Reiri drifted downward, her feet softly touching the ground before the she made her way back toward the hallway, "Not everything is as black and white as they appear, Riza. Please remember that." The vampire disappeared down the hall, leaving Riza alone with her thoughts.


End file.
